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Cytomegalovirus Retinitus



Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is very common within the general population, but it often shows little or no symptoms in healthy people (Gateway). It infects between 50% to 85% of adults in the United States by the age of 40 (CDC). However, in the immunodepressed population, there is often an active infection that shows many possible symptoms. Within the HIV infected community, the CMV virus’ most common symptoms are retinitus and gastrointestinal problems (Gateway). In these patients, CMV retinitus usually develops when the T-cell count is below 50 cells/mm^3. CMV retinitus presents itself as an area of whitening in the retina of the eye. The whitening may be accompanied by a hemorrhage (Medscape).

CMV retinitus is particularly important to the HIV/AIDS community. Infection with CMV is a major cause of disease and death in immunocompromised patients, specifically HIV infected patients (CDC). Retinitus is one of the most common symptoms of CMV infection within the HIV community. As stated before, CMV retinitus presents itself as an area of whitening within the retina. Hemorrhages may or may not occur. If the infection involves the posterior pole of the eye where many large blood vessels, there is a strong likelihood that hemorrhaging will occur where as if the infection is in the peripheral retina where there is a small number of large blood vessels, hemorrhaging is less likely to occur. CMV retinitus most often occurs in the peripheral retina and the area around the optic nerve. Since vision is determined mostly by the fovea, which is located in the central part of the retina, a large part of the retina can be affected before the infected individual ever develops noticeable visual symptoms. These visual symptoms are floaters, photophobia, and visual field defects (Medscape). CMV retinitus spreads directly from diseased retina to healthy parts of the...